Five-year-old Michael Joseph Vaughan missing since July 27, 2021: Update

On July 22, 2022, the public received a haunting reminder from Idaho’s Fruitland Police Department that it’s now been one year since six-year-old Michael Joseph Vaughan disappeared from his neighborhood.  At their most recent press briefing, police updated us on the missing child’s case – one they’ve been working on along with the Idaho State Police and the FBI.

Michael [five-years-old at the time] was last seen at 6:30 p.m. on July 27, 2021, at his home on Southwest 9th Street in Fruitland. Police have since refined the timeline of events and believe Michael’s disappearance occurred between 6:40 and 7 p.m.  ~  Idaho Statesman

Fruitland is approximately 50 miles west of Boise.  Police there say that while developing a detailed timeline of events leading up to Michael’s disappearance, investigators have processed over 1,000 leads.

Investigators want to identify a man seen walking through the splash pad area of Crestview Park leading up to the time of Michael’s disappearance. The man is described as a white male adult, late 20s early 30s. He was seen wearing black shorts, a white t-shirt with cut off sleeves, dark colored shoes and hat.

Police say that the man is not a suspect or a person of interest, but they need to speak with him to determine his whereabouts and if he witnessed anything that would helpful to the investigation (Picture below).

“Detectives work daily to sift through viable leads and piece together the known information so we can solve this case,” says Fruitland Police Chief JD Huff.

“As members of this community, we agonize with the family and have dedicated our resources to bringing Michael home. We continue to work with our investigative partners, release relevant information, and believe broader distribution of this story will generate more attention and tips that can be investigated. Anyone with any information, please let us know. No tidbit of information is benign or too obscure as we process the overall picture.”

The National Center for Missing and Endangered Children shared that:

“We hope that someone can have the courage and strength to bring forth the information that could help us find Michael,” says Michael’s mother Brandi Neal.  “This is a continuing nightmare that no family should ever have to go through. We want Michael home with us and appreciate the communities support and tips. We know even the smallest piece of information can bring Michael home.”

July 27, 2021, started like every other normal summer day for Michael and his family. His mother, Brandi Neal, told NCMEC that she had been working numerous days in a row and that this was finally her last day before a break.

She promised her son Michael, whom she affectionately dubbed “Monkey” due to his rambunctious and full-of-energy personality, that when she returned home, she would have a few days off for them to play together. Brandi called home later that afternoon, around 4 p.m., and Michael was playing video games. Everything was normal.

She didn’t know at the time that a few hours later she would receive the call that would change her world.

On May 7, 2022, Crime Online reported the Fruitland Police as saying that a reward for information leading to the missing boy had reached in excess of $52,860.

You can send tips to findmichael@fruitland.org  or Crime Stoppers https://crime-stoppers.org/  

Tips can be made anonymously. The reward for information leading to Michael’s safe return is $52,992.00. This reward fund is being maintained by the City of Fruitland.

Check out the July 22 police briefing video below for the latest updates on the search for Michael.

(Source: Fruitland Police Department)

Posted by Richard Webster, Ace News Today   /   Follow Richard on Facebook and Twitter